No lack of talentDo gifted Asian-American students need more social support to thrive academically? APF granteeZeb Kai Kok Lim aims to find out.

BY JAMIE CHAMBERLIN

Monitor staff

When Zeb Kai Kok Lim came to the United States from Malaysia
to study computer science, he felt overwhelmed by the coursework and spent
so much time learning what to expect
from American professors that he fell
behind in his studies and dropped out.
Frustrated though not deterred, Lim
found a mentor who supported his desire to drop computer science and Lim
returned to Iowa State University three
years later to earn a bachelor’s degree in
psychology. He’s now pursuing his doctorate in counseling psychology at the
University of Kansas, where his academic
advisor also identified him as gifted.

Lim’s experience as a “gifted dropout”
has prompted him to investigate whether
gifted Asian-American students are
getting the support they need to make
the most of their academic talents. With
a $25,000 Esther Katz Rosen fellowship
from the American Psychological
Foundation, Lim is sifting through
National Center for Education Statistics
data to determine whether gifted Asian-Americans lag behind their peers in
“social capital,” or help from parents,
educators and mentors on career
options, educational opportunities and
resources, such as scholarships.

“Asian-Americans may be achieving
highly, but many are not achieving as
highly as their European-American
counterparts who have the same
academic abilities,” he says.

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Lim is also looking at
how gender, race and social
support affect these students’
educational and career choices
over time to determine what
sort of career counseling,
emotional support and
mentoring these students need
at different stages of their
academic careers.

There’s relatively little
research on the needs of gifted
Asian-Americans, says Lim.
That’s due in part to prevailing
stereotypes, he says.

“There is a continuing
myth that Asian-American
students are doing just fine,”
he says. In reality, plenty of
gifted Asian-American students
are struggling academically,
some because their immigrant
parents are unfamiliar with the
American education system,
and others because they don’t
find support at home for
careers they feel passionate
about. Asian-American
students are also often excluded
from minority scholarships
and other services for minority students
because they are seen as high-achieving,
Lim says.

His goal is to help parents, teachers,
educators and policymakers better
understand the unique challenges facing
these students.

“The lack of research with giftedAsian-American students makes it hardfor educators and counselors to provideculturally appropriate guidance,” hesays. Psychologist Esther Katz Rosen,PhD, established the Rosen Fund in1974 as way to support ongoing researchon gifted children. The applicationdeadline for the 2013 award is March 1.For more information on the grant, visit
www.apa.org/apf/funding/rosen.aspx. n